


Normal is an Illusion

by TuckerMuratore



Series: Happiness is a Warm Puppy [2]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/M, M/M, puppy, this is all fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-05
Updated: 2015-03-05
Packaged: 2018-03-16 10:07:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,537
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3484232
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TuckerMuratore/pseuds/TuckerMuratore
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The things you do - or don't do - for family.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Normal is an Illusion

**Author's Note:**

> Takes place between the two sections of "What a Doll."

“Phil, I’m going to need your help.”

Agent Coulson kept his focus on the kitchen counter where he was assembling a sandwich. “Barnes, if you don’t want Tony to work on your arm, then it’s your responsibility to keep –”

“Phil, no, that’s not it. I need…I need us to look…normal.”

Phil looked up at that, a slice of turkey still in his hand. His eyes caught sight of the three-legged puppy tucked under Bucky’s arm. He looked back at the sandwich, deliberately placed the turkey on top, and turned back to Bucky.

“I can’t adopt her, not officially, until they come and do a home check. The shelter. Make sure she’s got space to play and to walk and there’s nothing hazardous and I know I have the first two but the second they meet Tony, and Thor, and while Jane and Darcy and Steve and Bruce minus the Other Guy are about as normal as we get I don’t know if they can balance Thor and please keep Clint out of the ceiling and oh, God, Tony engineering a leg for her although that might be a point in my favor although maybe between Steve and Pepper we can do something with Tony?” Bucky finished in a rush of air. Peggy squirmed in his arm and he set her cautiously on the floor. “Please?”

Phil looked down at the tiny puppy limping and sliding her way across the kitchen floor, only to flop over about a foot from his shoe and stare at him, yipping occasionally. He quirked a smile and dropped a piece of turkey, much to the delight of both Peggy and Bucky. “Call a family meeting for tonight.”

***

Steve sat in the back at the kitchen’s breakfast bar counter. He’d already met Peggy and he knew he wasn’t really the intended audience for this meeting. Bucky had pushed the coffee table aside and was playing tug-of-war with Peggy. Tony dropped into the seat beside Steve, coffee cup in hand, and slung his other arm around Steve’s shoulders. “Steve? I do not want a puppy in this Tower. Puppies pee in the corner and chew through wires and Dummy needs all the help he can get without worrying about a puppy and then? Puppies turn into dogs. Dogs, Steve, large, loud barking things that need feeding and watering and bathing and human interaction and frequent vacuuming. It’s cute, I will give it that, but I don’t want to keep it. It will be underfoot, Steve.”

“It’s not an ‘it,’ Tony, it’s a ‘she.’ Her name is Peggy.”

“Son of Coul! I have been informed of the addition to our warrior clan! Where is the frightful beast!”

Bucky pointed to the frightful beast, who was chewing furiously on the tug-of-war rope.

“Oh, it is yet a wee thing! May you treat it well, and may it thrive under your care, and be fearsome like the Bilgesnipe.”

Phil shot a quizzing look in Thor’s direction. “Like what?”

“The bilgesnipe. You know, huge, scaly, big antlers.” He wiggled his fingers by his head. “You don’t have those?”

“Don’t think so.”

“They are repulsive, and they trample everything in their path.” Thor crashed onto the sofa near Steve and Tony.

Clint and Bruce walked in together. Clint immediately took a seat on the sofa closest to Phil. Bruce saw Steve in the back and turned into the kitchen to make a cup of tea.

“Hey, Steve. You were there when Bucky picked her up. Do you think she’d be good with, good for…the Other Guy?” He fiddled with the tea bag in his hands.

As Steve considered his answer, Natasha walked in. Peggy, who had only given cursory looks to the other Avengers as they’d come in and taken seats around Phil and Bucky, perked an ear up and gave a tilted look to Natasha as she came to a halt by the edge of the sofa. Natasha glanced blankly at Bucky and Phil, and narrowed her eyes at Peggy. Peggy dropped the rope and proceeded to hop awkwardly across to Natasha’s feet, where she dropped her chin across one boot and promptly fell asleep. Mouths dropped open around the room. Natasha stared in amazement at the puppy, and then carefully scooped her up. “Tony, you will fix this. Make it have little red polka dots. The rest of you will not mess this up for Bucky.” She nuzzled the sleeping puppy and deposited her in Clint’s lap.

Clint swallowed. “I think, on behalf of all of us here, we agree to your terms.”

Natasha nodded.

Phil gave a little cough. “The shelter will be here Thursday. Two days. Thank you for your cooperation. Meeting adjourned.”

***

Joy arrived at the Tower a few minutes before two Thursday afternoon. It had started raining the day before and was supposed to continue through the weekend. She shrugged off her raincoat and crossed the lobby towards the desk, dripping water behind her. A tall blonde woman met her there, holding a hot mug.

“Mrs Sorenson? I’m Pepper Potts. Bucky’s upstairs with Peggy but given the weather, we thought you might appreciate this first.” She smiled. “It’s cider. With a cinnamon stick, I hope that’s okay. If you’ll follow me, we can get you warmed up.”

Joy gratefully accepted the cider. “It’s Joy, please. Has Peggy been any trouble? This is her first major rainstorm.” She took a sip and followed Pepper to the elevator bank.

Pepper took a swipe card on her badge and ran it over a panel by the last elevator. “She’s doing okay, so far. I assume Bucky told you he doesn’t live alone?” Joy nodded. “Great. That helps. Steve, you’ve met. Peggy took an instant liking to Natasha, which wasn’t near as surprising as Natasha taking an instant liking to Peggy. Phil feeds her scraps of his turkey sandwiches and Clint is trying to develop an optimized tennis ball delivery system. Bruce is considering training her to be a service dog, similar to the ones veterans with PTSD have. Thor,” – the elevator dinged and she motioned for Joy to step in – “Thor is hoping she’ll be a guard dog but we’ve left it to Jane to explain that one. And Tony is, well, Tony.” She swiped the card again, and the doors shut and the elevator started up. “Do you have any questions for me?”

Joy shook her head. “Mostly my job here is to meet with the people Peggy will be with the most, make sure they understand the care that a dog like Peggy requires. We were so excited when Bucky found her. They fit each other, don’t you think? They haven’t a care in the world when they’re with each other. Does that make sense?”

Pepper smiled at Joy as the elevators doors opened, just as an arrow tipped with a tennis ball flew past. A slightly mechanical voice echoed in the hall, announcing the distance it had traveled as Peggy followed precariously yet cheerfully behind, balanced on a Roomba. Pepper guided Joy warily out of the elevator. “JARVIS, why are arrows flying down the hallway? No, don’t answer that. Clint!” She turned to Joy, still somewhat shocked at the sight of the puppy riding a Roomba across the floor. “JARVIS is the butler, if you will, for the Tower. He can answer any questions you may have, as well. JARVIS, this is Joy Sorenson. She’s here to make sure this is a good home for Peggy.”

“Hello, Mrs Sorenson. Shall I call the group for you? Mr Barton is already with you, I see, while Peggy is now with Miss Romanov and Mr Barnes. Captain Rogers and Dr Banner are with Mr Stark in Mr Stark’s lab. Thor was called home to Asgard three hours ago and wishes to extend his regrets at not being able to meet you.”

Joy turned wide eyes to Pepper. “Asgard?” she squeaked.

“Yes, Asgard. I take it Bucky did not explain, then, the nature of his roommates?” She turned slightly and addressed a shadow. “Clint, go get Phil and bring him up here, please?” The archer dropped from the ceiling and headed for the elevator, cheerfully waving his composite bow in greeting, mocked up to launch tennis balls. Joy took a small step back towards Pepper. “Joy, why don’t we have a seat over here? Do you want more cider?” Joy nodded mutely and watched the archer disappear behind the closing doors. 

“Bucky and Steve have known each other since they were children. After his accident, Steve pushed to move him into the Tower, which is why he lives here even though he’s not an official team member. Similarly, Dr Jane Foster and Darcy Lewis also have rooms here, due to Jane’s relationship with Thor.” Pepper pulled the jar of cinnamon sticks from the cabinet. “When Agent Coulson – Phil – arrives, he can explain the team to you before you meet them.” She put the mug of cider into the microwave to warm up.

“Phil has arrived!” Clint sashayed off the elevator with Phil in tow. Phil had a tablet in his hand and an exasperated expression on his face.

“Ah, Mrs Sorenson. I’m Agent Coulson with the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division.”

Joy blinked. “That’s quite a mouthful.”

“I know. We’re working on it.” He sat beside her on the sofa as Clint moved to take the cider from the microwave. Pepper swatted his hand away and pointed down the hallway.

“This is not your cider. GO.” Pepper waited until Clint disappeared before walking over to the living room. She sat down across from Joy and Phil, scooting the mug across the table so Joy could reach it.

Phil started. “The Avengers Initiative is an idea to bring together a group of remarkable people to see if they could become something more. To see if they could work together when we needed them to, to fight the battles that we never could. Clint is our archer; he’s the most skilled marksman I’ve ever seen. He shows his inner child a bit often, perhaps, but that may be more my concern than anyone else’s. Dr Bruce Banner and Tony Stark are geniuses in their fields, physics and engineering, respectively. Natasha Romanov is a gifted spy and interrogator, and excels at hand-to-hand combat. Captain Steve Rogers is a brilliant military commander. And Thor–”

Thunder cracked outside and Joy’s head jerked towards the windows as Thor crashed to the patio, in full armor, hammer in hand and cape rising in the wind and rain behind him. He stood up and flung open the patio door as Pepper dropped her head to her hand. Phil smiled benignly at him. “Thor, this is Joy Sorenson, from the shelter. We were just discussing you.”

“Daughter of Soren! I am pleased that you are still here! I am Thor, son of Odin All-Father! I find Peggy a delight and hope to ensure her continued stay in our home! I informed my father of my required presence this afternoon and finished our business early. Have you met my fair Jane or the lady Darcy?”

Pepper broke in. “Thor, please, can you find Bucky and Natasha? And Peggy should be with them?”

“Of course! I shall bring them to you immediately!” He laid Mjölnir on the table in front of Joy and Phil and strode from the room.

Joy sat, stunned, and then shakingly touched a fingertip to the hammer. “These Avengers, you call them, they aren’t…they aren’t…” She trailed off and picked up the cider. Cider was normal. The mug was normal.

Pepper smiled. “They are all extraordinary. Only a few are…special. But they are all good people. They wouldn’t be here otherwise. I know they can be overwhelming. The weather hasn’t helped. They’re all active and being inside the Tower for two days means they’re burning off energy inside. Remember being restless as a kid?”

Joy smiled. Ms Potts – Pepper – was normal. “I do. But as explanatory as that may be, are they responsible enough to take care of Peggy?” She paused. “Do you feel that? Is the floor vibrating?”

Phil shook his head. “I’m sure it’s the storm.” He paused for a moment. “Although once, we had a transistorized blast gun. Tony tried to reengineer it.”

Pepper shot Phil a look and gave a quick shake of her head. Joy had gone pale again at the mention of a transistorized blast gun. Thankfully, Bucky and Natasha walked in, Peggy asleep against Natasha’s shoulder. Natasha motioned for Phil to scoot over and sat between him and Joy. Bucky plopped down beside Pepper. “Pepper, is the floor shaking? What is Tony doing?”

The sounds of a loud crash and explosion ripped through the Tower.

***

Natasha stood in the center of the living room. Pepper stood in the back. Both woman had expressions of ice. Phil flipped nonchalantly through the tablet. Clint fiddled with an arrow and was deliberately avoiding Natasha’s eyes. Thor and Bruce sat subdued beside Steve and Tony, who was picking at his bandages despite Steve’s attempts to prevent him from doing so. Bucky sat on the floor, giving a contented Peggy belly rubs.

Natasha broke the ice. “We have been allowed to keep Peggy. No thanks to your help. Clint, seriously, tennis balls on arrows? No, stop. I don’t want to hear it.” She cut Clint off as he’d started to speak. “And you! Full armor? Mjölnir? You broke the bench! Jane has given you clothing to help you blend in, wear it!” Thor opened his mouth but Bruce quietly shushed him. The motion drew Natasha’s ire. “Bruce, Steve, you two are supposed to be the responsible adults in Tony’s lab, you know he’s not really a grown-up! I threw a puppy at Pepper when you blew up the lab!”

“That’s fine, because I love to be handed things. Apparently I also love to be thrown puppies.” There was no amusement in Pepper’s voice. “I will tell you now, Tony, do not say a word.” Tony stayed uncharacteristically silent. Steve had threatened him before the meeting.

Phil looked up from his tablet. “Mrs Sorenson has agreed to let Bucky keep Peggy. Thanks to Bucky’s continuous visits before bringing Peggy home, she feels she knows he is of sound character. Apparently the same courtesy has been extended to myself and Ms Potts. As for the rest of you, Stark Industries has made a healthy donation to the shelter, and you all have agreed to volunteer ten hours a week for the next two months. You are not to interact with Mrs Sorenson. I’m sure you’ll be happy to hear, the hospital says she was simply overwhelmed by the events of this afternoon and is expected to be released in three days.”

Natasha looked around the room. “You will not mess this up, again, for Bucky. Understood?”

Clint swallowed and looked up. “I think, again, on behalf of all of us here, again, we agree to your terms. Again. On pain of death?”

Natasha nodded.

Pepper gave a little cough. “The volunteering schedule for the shelter will be posted tomorrow. Thank you for your cooperation. Meeting adjourned.”

**Author's Note:**

> For anyone that's ever worked with, for, volunteered, adopted an animal from, whatever, an animal shelter, you know they just don't let anyone waltz in and waltz out with a dog or cat or gerbil. So, naturally, the Avengers had to screw up impressing the shelter...


End file.
